Carmageddon: Sydney’s slowest commutes revealed

Frustrated motorists are being forced to crawl along at speeds slower than a horse and cart with the clogged ­arteries to the heart of the city in cardiac arrest.

• Editorial: Sydney ran smoother in horse and wagon days

EXCLUSIVE: Frustrated motorists are being forced to crawl along at speeds slower than a horse and cart with the clogged ­arteries to the heart of the city in cardiac arrest.

An exclusive Saturday Telegraph investigation reveals drivers limp along at an average of as little as 12km/h during peak hours, leaving them on a road to nowhere.

The PM commute along Cleveland St, Surry Hills was 12.3km/h. Picture: Michael Bilbe-Taylor

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Alison Rd in Randwick, Cleveland St in the city and Victoria Rd, one of the main thoroughfares from the west through to the city, all almost grind to a standstill in the mornings. And in the afternoon “rush” things get even worse along Cleveland St, with motor­ists on the choked road travelling at an average of just 12.33km/h.

In fact travellers in the early 1900s would have fared better, with a horse and cart trotting along at 16km/h.

A Roads and Maritime Services spokeswoman said population growth, increased travel demands and changing travel patterns were the main causes of congestion on the state’s road network.

The AM commute along Victoria Rd, Drummoyne, was 16.7km/h.

She said the NSW government has committed $43 billion to try to fix the problem, with new and upgraded roads, new motorways, pinch points and clearways programs, and public transport projects such as the Metro, light rail and the B-Line network on the northern beaches.

But commuters ground down by the gridlock and looking for immediate ­answers will be left pounding their steering wheels in frustration after Roads Minister Melinda Pavey yesterday declined to comment.

The Telegraph investigation found the slowest roads in Sydney are centred around the CBD, with highways such as the M1, M2, M4, M5 and M7 all averaging at least 39km/h during the morning peak and 44km/h in the afternoon.

The numbers were calculated by adding up the official data from the RMS for the three months to December 2018, and finding the average speed for the quarter.

The AM commute on Parramatta Rd at Leichhardt was 17.7km/h. Picture: Richard Dobson

Sluggish roads in the morning peak included the Princes Hwy between Arncliffe and Chippendale, where motorists averaged just 17.33km/h, and Parramatta Rd between Ashfield and Sydney at 17.66km/h. In the afternoon Parramatta Rd between Concord and Harris Park moves at a sedate 18.66km/h, and ­O’Riordan St in Alexandria only averages 19km/h.

“Roads and Maritime Services is continuing to investigate solutions which will maximise efficiency of the ­existing road network,” the RMS spokeswoman said.

Labor’s roads spokeswoman Jodi McKay said if elected in March, Labor will prioritise public transport over roads.

“The solution for busting Sydney’s congestion won’t be found by funnelling more cars onto the already congested roads,” she said.

The average speed of a hose and cart, such as these seen on Parramatta Rd, was 16km/h. Picture: State Records of NSW

THE CITY’S SLOWEST ROADS 

Average speed, 3 months to December 2018

■ Alison Rd, Randwick

AM peak 16km/h 

PM peak23.66km/h

■ Bondi Road, Bondi

AM 18.33km/h 

PM25.33km/h

■ Harris St, Pyrmont

AM21.66km/h

PM  19km/h 

■ O’Riordan St, Alexandria

AM22.33km/h

PM 19km/h 

■ Pacific Hwy, Chatswood

AM 19.66km/h 

PM24.33km/h

■ Princes Hwy, near St Peters

AM 17.33km/h 

PM22

Originally published as Carmageddon: Sydney’s slowest commutes revealed